Fading Pain
by kamikaze-bulma
Summary: Bulma has passed on, and it is now time for Vegeta to face what has been haunting him... his life. I don't know how to describe it... so just read, okies?


Fading Pain  
  
Authors Notes: Gloomy is what this story is practiacally about... remember mood swings? Well, I was hit with one, and poor Veggie-chan is going to be my victim. Yet another song  
is the inspiration to this... so get to reading already!  
  
  
  
  
Vegeta sat at a solemn grave where his beloved rested. It had been approximately 1 year since her death. Showing no feelings, the prince leaned against her giant tombstone.   
  
Glancing over to the writing on the stone, his expression lightend a little. The stone had english written for the earthlings, and in Saiyajin, requested by Vegeta. It read: "Bulma Briefs, loving mother, wife, daughter. We will miss her dearly."  
  
Inhaling deeply, he looked away from it. His heart ached with such a passion it was killing him. Never in his life had he mourned for anything like he did now. He remembered back when he was 10, working with Frieza, destroying planets and races that didn't look worthy. Back then he had so much hatred, no one was worthy. Knowing of his father's fall, and his race's demise only made him hunger for the power of the universe.  
  
Becoming number one was always a longing that he could never become. He was always in the shadow of someone, some warrior of less caliber than he. Blinding rage, lethal animosity, tormenting anguish kept him going, something in him always snapped when he couldn't take it anymore. Over the years, built up anger made him cynical.  
  
  
He remembered when he was younger, in his prime, he was assigned to demolish a planet. Vegeta took a few steps across the baren land on the planet Uziben. The people there were peaceful, which meant that this planet would be a very easy mission. Tapping his scouter, he immediately found a village of the Martains. Flying at top speed, he swooped down at the people. It looked deserted, wind rushing through the valley. He frowned, he knew that they were trying to delay the inevitable.  
  
A little girl stood staring at him, and even dared to greet him. His lip curled in disgust as the little girl handed him a kisenian blossom. Glaring at the crimson bloom, he watched it as it crumbled into a charcol remain, his doing of course. The little girl's eyes opened wide as the flower disintegrated with a wind. Her lip quivering and tears flowing, she cried out of fear. The blue haired girl ran into a hut and screamed.  
  
Acting very annoyed, Vegeta rolled his eyes and threw a weak ki blast at the hut. As he watched it blow up, he could hear screams of innocent women and children. He felt a twinge of pain in his chest as he did this, but he shook it off. It was only a weak family, only the strong should deserve to live.  
  
A man ran out of the hut sitting right across from him. He was yelling and ranting about that being his family. A woman came out and hid behind the man, tears forming in her eyes.  
  
"Do you have no shame?!" she screamed through her tears. "They were completely helpless! How could you do that to them?!"  
  
Building rage in him shot out as energy out of his palm destroying the noisy people. He yawned, Frezia didn't give him much of an assignment this time. Then again, he never would get the job he deserved, he was one of the four Saiyajins left. He often wondered why he killed the whole race and left the strongest alive. He knew that one day, that would be his downfall.  
  
  
And it was. A courageous low class warrior arose one year and dared to take him on. Everyone says that he had beaten him on Earth when he and Nappa took a trip there. But it took Gohan and Krillin to help Goku out. And they call that honorable fighting. As he recalled, he only challenged Goku, but he was definitely weak, he needed his son to defend him. But non the less, he was defeated.  
  
He hadn't moved from that noisy woman's grave, still remembering his life. It seemed to go by so fast, but he had so much longer to live than Bulma did, one reason he resented being a Saiyajin. She never knew how much he loved her. Every rose has it's thorn, his was his pride. If only he could be like Goku and express himself to her. He would have done anything for her, if only he were there to save her that fateful day. His gaze narrowed as he thought of her.  
  
  
His spacecraft touched down on Namek-sei, the long awaited eternal life was within his grasp. Vegeta knew that Frieza and his stupid clown for warriors were there, and it wasn't going to be an easy task to retrieve the Dragonballs. He remembers the fight with Zarbon well, mainly because that was the first time he had seen her face.  
  
She was annoying, yes, and foolish, thinking Zarbon would think of her anything more than target practice. But that made him smile, she was terrified of him, it was only natural to be rooting for Zarbon rather than himself. But that was okay, that only gave him a chance to shine in her eyes.  
  
He kicked himself mentally when he called her gorgeous... especially letting it slip to Kakarot's brat. That was the first time, and only time he had complimented her, and it wasn't even to her face. If he could take it all back now, he still felt he wouldn't do it again. Some of the moments between them couldn't be improved.  
  
  
Watching the clouds accret, he let the wind blow mercilessly around him. A storm had made it's way over to the Prince's thinking area. He neglected the lightning in the distance and continued to think.  
  
  
Thinking of the return of Frieza-bot, he wondered how he could let it slip his mind. Now that he thought about it, Trunks does look a lot like her, and Bra is practically her clone. He knew that Goku had defeated Frieza the first time, but did a lousy job finishing it. Although it was mainly his fault for letting him transform, it was still Goku's fault. It made him extremely proud to know that it was his bloodline that finally defeated that midget freak. But it wasn't him.  
  
He often wondered, why her of all people? There was a planet full of women for his taking, but he chose to stay with her. After all, she did supply the gravity machine, along with a place for him to stay. It was only out of politeness to take her as his. He frowned at his last thought, he knew better than that. He had a strong bond with that human, one that was unseen and untangible.  
  
Now that's all he had as a rememberance of her. A bond that had been broken with death. A very preventable death, if only he were there to protect her.   
  
  
She complained about a check that needed to be cashed, wanting him to do it of course. Out of his stubborness, he refused. If only he hadn't. She sped out of the driveway. He shrugged it off and continued to the gravity chamber.  
  
He turned up the machine to 1000 times Earth's gravity, changing to SSJ4 of course. In the middle of his vicious training, Trunks ran in, trying to supress his tears. Powering down to normal he frowned at his intruding son as his daughter came in after him bawling her eyes out.  
  
"What do you think you're doing in here? Can't you see that I'm busy training?!" he spat. His daughter frowned at him stomped over to him.  
  
"Why don't you listen before you speak? Mom's in the hospital!" she cried. Vegeta was shocked internally, but showed no remorse for what he just heard.  
  
"Stupid woman, I told her she should have learned how to drive." he laughed. Trunks and Bra looked at him, surprised about his uncaringness.  
  
"Mom has been listed under intensive care. Dad, she was shot today at the bank." his son spoke through his tears. Vegeta's eyes opened wide and wondered if he should check on her. "She lost an abundant amount of blood, and there's no donor around. Dad, she might die."  
  
"Not while I'm alive. Damn her!" he yelled flying past his children. He flew as fast as he could to the hospital.  
  
Crashing through the front doors, he had to threaten a few doctors to see her. Breaking the door as he entered her room, he seen her hooked up to a bunch of machines, needles all over her body. While observing the machines he walked calmly over to his injured beloved. She looked pale, and in pain. She of all people shouldn't have to experience pain, she was just too innocent.  
  
"Bulma..." he whispered. She twitched at the sound of his voice. Straining to open her eyelids, she cracked a half smile.  
  
"Vegeta... why are you here? You know I'll be fine." she said while she lay lifeless. "Dinner will be done when I get home."  
  
"Forget dinner you stupid woman. What the hell happened?" he took her hand, noticing the I.V. needles in her wrist.  
  
"Well, I went to the bank, like I asked you to. I was standing in line, and pair of bank robbers stormed through demanding money right then. The dumb guy didn't even use a disguise, and I recognized him. He looked at me and gulped a little. He said something to his partner about knowing me from somewhere and pointed his gun towards me. H- he..." she began coughing, hacking up blood every time.  
  
"Shh... don't talk anymore. Save your energy." his frown chiseled even deeper. Who on this pitiful planet would take out his anger on a woman?  
  
"Vegeta, I don't... this is too much. Tell Bra and Trunks that I love them." She coughed again.  
  
"Don't say that. You'll be fine."  
  
"No, this isn't a fairytale Vegeta, I can't make it through this. I---"  
  
"Don't you dare give up on me..." he felt emotions overwhelm him. "I could wish you back..." he grinned.  
  
"You can't, Vegeta, this is a natural death. Don't. You know that I--"  
  
"But-"  
  
"But nothing. Vegeta, I love you. Never forget that." she let a few tears drop as she coughed. Her coughing became violent, more and more blood coming out of her mouth. Her blood pressure rose with each cough, signaling the doctors into the room. They pushed him out of the room. Suddenly he heard the heartbeat machine flatline and the doctors scrambling to get her heart beating again. Then he heard a loud shocking noise, and doctors hollering.  
  
The room became quiet, and his mind totally cleared of everything. He knew that she was gone. Clenching his teeth and fists, he still couldn't stop his teardrops.  
  
  
Unexpectedly, those tears in his flashback became real ones. If he ever found the man that did this to her and his family, he would rip him limb from limb making him suffer for what he's done.  
  
He couldn't go through life knowing the only one that he loved was gone. She opened his eyes to things that he would have otherwise ignored. She even softened him up, dared to challenge him. If there was one thing that he had learned from her existance, it was never give up.  
  
No matter how hard he tried, this battle with loneliness was getting the upper hand. He knew that if he was about to do what he was going to, he would be going against everything she lived for. But going against her to see her again was well worth it.  
  
He stood up and looked down at her tombstone, her smile flashing through his mind again. Now was the time. Concentrating his energy to his palm, he rested his hand over his heart.  
  
"Bulma-chan, I wish I could have told you I loved you when I could. I am so-- sorry. If you can hear me now, I love you with all my heart." he cried, exerting his endless energy through his chest. His breathing becoming difficult, he felt serene. He quickly wondered if this was how Bulma felt right before she passed away. Hopefully she had, because now he was going to be with her.   
  
He dropped down to his knees, he stopped breathing and everything became a white haze. He smiled right before he died, showing an everlasting expression of reason. The rain came down hard over his lifeless body. One time, he had heard that if it had rained, your prayers have been answered.  
  
As it poured mercilessly over his deceased body, he knew that his prayers were more than answered now.  
  
  
  
  
  
So what you think? I know... I know, Vegeta isn't the hara-kiri type, but I just thought I'd make him that way. Like it? Hate it? Make you sick to your stomach? I MUST KNOW! Flames are welcome as always... u_u;;  
  
-Kamikaze Bulma 


End file.
